


It Was Called "Love"

by Liza0111



Category: Heavy Rain
Genre: Android AU, Angst, Ethan not getting arrested by the police, M/M, Verbal Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-26
Updated: 2018-06-26
Packaged: 2019-05-28 20:18:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15056993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liza0111/pseuds/Liza0111
Summary: He wondered why it didn’t happen sooner. Perhaps it was because the objective of proving Ethan Mars’ innocence did not innately conflict with his original purpose of finding the Origami Killer, he never considered the possibility that this is the result of deviancy.





	It Was Called "Love"

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dadsBBQparty](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dadsBBQparty/gifts).



> credit to Greg for his idea of an android Norman AU. I wrote this to fight him but instead I really hurt my own feelings while writing this???? I played myself so hard on this one. Ugh.

 

Norman Jayden wasn’t surprised by the amount of mockery and hatred he was met with upon arriving at the city of Philadelphia. Not having the trust of the locals may hinder his investigation, but he was programed to carry out his duties in the most effective manner. Besides, androids had always been on the receiving end of contempt ever since they were manufactured and introduced to the public. This won’t be a problem.

 

He was sent here for one reason: to identify and capture the Origami Killer, a man who had abducted and murdered eight children.

 

It was his job to analyze every piece of evidence that is available. After inspecting the wasteland where the eighth victim’s body was found, the next piece of evidence arrived at the police station on his own. Ethan Mars. The father of Shaun Mars. There was much to him for Norman to analyze, as one of his specialty function was examining human psychology. The human was clearly not in a steady mental state. Dark circles beneath his eyes indicated a lack of rest. His red and swollen eyes indicated traces of crying within the last hour. His heart rate was abnormally high. His overall body language screamed emotional distress. And guilt. There was so much guilt. Norman took note of everything. Ethan noticed him staring and flinched slightly, and he responded accordingly by turning his head away. He could detect a heightened level of stress now that Ethan Mars was aware of his presence as an android. Some humans tended to react this way towards machines.

 

Now another child had fallen victim to the Origami Killer’s crimes, little Shaun Mars, making him the ninth kid who had gone missing in the rainy season over the past two years. After the interview with Ethan Mars, Norman was given access to the man’s background information. A tragic, helpless father was what Norman gathered from Ethan’s profile. As he exited from the viewing page, he suddenly remembered the desperation in Ethan Mar’s blue eyes. He wasn’t sure why, but it led to a fleeting moment of distress on his system. As the LED light on his temple turned from yellow back to blue, Norman reminded himself the goal of his mission. _Find the Origami Killer. Save Shaun Mars_.

 

 

 

 

 

Nathaniel and Korda both had nothing to do with the murders. _Disappointment_ was probably the closest emotion to what his mental processing was perceiving. There was less than 72 hours left until Shaun Mars drowned in a pool of rainwater. Less than 72 hours until Ethan Mars permanently loses both of his sons. The thought caused his LED light to flash yellow, taking a few seconds too long for it to return to serene blue.

 

Androids didn’t get tired, but a certain amount of rest was necessary to recharge. Despite knowing the damages this could do to his system, Norman still decided to work through nights without breaks. He couldn’t afford to fail on this case. Not this case.

 

Was this an act of self preservation? He questioned himself. Failure to complete his mission could potentially lead to his termination. Androids were highly replaceable. At this very moment, CyberLife was probably working on developing an enhanced version of him, RX700. But this didn’t feel right. He was strongly motivated by something else, something unfamiliar to him.

 

On his display he could see a few error messages popping up, but he discarded them quickly. There was no time to waste. He could always do a full system checkup later. Right now, the only thing that mattered was saving Shaun Mars.

 

“Ethan Mars is the Origami Killer!” The words rang in his ears like thunder. Norman knew this wasn’t true, even went as far as arguing with Lieutenant Carter Blake, but there was no changing the man’s mind. At the end Norman shut his mouth because he knew this won’t help the investigation. He recognized the fact that without him, Ethan Mars would have no protection left. One word from Blake could get him kicked off the case, or even terminated for good. He wasn’t concern at the prospect of being deactivated, perhaps because he knew that day would come sooner or later when a newer model is released. However, he felt deeply troubled by the idea of leaving Ethan Mars to fend for himself.

 

Anyone who worked at the station could tell just how much Blake hated him. He won’t give the aggressive officer a reason to send him away. No. His mission must be completed. _The Origami Killer must be captured. Shaun Mars must be saved._ And Ethan Mars……Ethan Mars……is not the killer.

 

 

 

 

 

Without telling Blake, he started his own investigation. Hours after hours spent analyzing evidence, he finally found the lead he was looking for. Paco Mendez. The Blue Lagoon. The watch on the masked man’s wrist. He figured it out. He knew who the real killer is.

 

Yet his words couldn’t reach Lieutenant Blake or Captain Perry. Despite the fact that Norman held concrete evidence, the two police officers had no interest in pursuing his thought. “We know Ethan Mars did the killings, and now we have a solid lead on where he is hiding. There is nothing left for you to do now, _Norman_ .” A cruel smile tugged at the corners of Blake’s mouth as something came to his mind. “Stay at your office, till I come back with Mars. This is a direct order from your commanding officer. You hear that? It’s a **direct order**.”

 

Norman froze as his field of vision was plastered with those unforgiving words. He couldn't move, as if chains were placed on his limbs. _Direct order: stay at the office till Lt. Blake returns._  It conflicted with Norman’s original objective, but he was programmed to follow the command of whoever was in charged of him. He stared at Blake, a hint of red mixing into the yellow of his LED light. “When we are done with the case, we are going to send you back where you came from, you useless piece of shit! Or should we go ahead and crush you? We can always tell CyberLife you had an accident while pursuing the criminal. It’s not like anyone would care!” He shoved Norman back into his office and slammed the door on him, Norman was entrapped in walls of white. “Alright, let’s head on over to 852 Theodore Roosevelt Road. Mars is hiding at the old warehouse.”

 

His system was being overloaded with abnormalities, which undoubtedly was caused by the order that he had just received from Blake. Norman glared at the shut door. He wasn’t supposed to be able to experience emotions, no androids should have this ability, behaving this way would result in them being classified as deviants, yet Norman couldn’t help but to register these human-liked feelings one by one. Frustration, anger, stress, worry, desperation……

 

**DIRECT ORDER: STAY AT THE OFFICE TILL LT.BLAKE RETURNS**

 

Error messages were bombarding his mental processing, but Norman’s focus wasn’t on that. For a split second, he saw a red wall standing before him, and an outline of his own shadowing pushing against it. Norman clenched his fist.

 

Ethan Mars will die. He was sure of that fact. He calculated the possibility of Ethan’s survival when Blake arrived on scene with his men and it was close to zero. He won’t stand a chance, even if he managed to escape twice, this time Blake’s orders were to shoot on sight. He won’t make it. Norman lifted his arm, ignoring all the error messages that were popping up in front of his eyes.

 

He didn’t have time to spare. Every second he waited meant a second closer to Ethan Mars meeting his end. He won’t allow it. **He won’t let Ethan Mars die.**

 

**DIRECT ORDER: STAY AT THE OFFICE-**

 

Norman punched the wall of red and watched it shattered like glass onto the floor. A flash of white consumed him and he was sure his biocomponents must be malfunctioning, because for a second he thought he felt the vibrations of a beating heart within his chest. He took a step back, gasping loudly for air. When Norman opened his eyes again, he was able to move again. The thought sent a sharp tremble through his body.  He had gained back his control despite the command from Carter Blake.

 

A new set of objectives had been updated. Norman had never felt this way before. There were his choices. For the first time, he was in charge of his own fate. _He was alive._

 

**Find the Origami Killer.**

**Save Shaun Mars.**

**Protect Ethan Mars.**

 

There was no time to waste. Norman didn’t think about the implications of his actions. He grabbed the doorknob to swing the door open and ran. He ran as fast as he could. He had to get to 852 Theodore Roosevelt Road immediately.

 

 

 

 

 

 

He could see Ethan from a distance, he could also see the snipers in position, pointing their guns at Ethan. Each step he took towards the man corresponded to an increase to Ethan’s rate of survival. He watched the statistics of his chance of demise going up drastically with each second, but he did not mind. There was only one way to save Ethan, and it was also the only way that Norman would end his life here.

 

He perfectly predicted the trajectory of the bullets using his calculations, and he knew how to intercept them from hitting the flesh of Ethan Mars. Androids didn’t feel pain, he shouldn’t be afraid, yet he couldn’t help but to be scared of a world where he would no longer be able to see Ethan anymore.

 

The bullets shot through his biocomponents as he shielded Ethan Mars with his own body, blue blood splashing over the man’s face and clothes. A hundred error messages flared up immediately, his system on full panic mode over the damages that were done to his sensors. Norman dropped to his knees as Ethan Mars’ eyes widened in shock, his expression full of disbelief. Norman didn’t want Ethan to see him like this, a destroyed android wasn’t a pretty sight, but there was no other way. He put his hand on Ethan’s shoulder, using the remaining strength he had left to support his weight.

 

**WARNING: CRITICAL DAMAGE. SYSTEM SHUT DOWN IN: 20 SECONDS.**

 

“Ethan Mars……you are innocent……” Norman choked out, blue blood dripping down the corners of his lips. He saw Ethan’s eyes filling up with tears. Was he crying for an android he barely even spoke to? If he wasn’t so badly damaged, he would have been able to better analyze Ethan’s emotions. But now all he got to work with was only feedback from his visuals. He interpreted those tears as evidence of sadness. “Take your son……tell them you have proof that you are innocent……they won’t shoot……” He touched Ethan’s cheek with his hand and gently wiped away the tears rolling down the side of his face. He wished he could do more to bring comfort to him. "Goodybe, Ethan."

 

**WARNING: CRITICAL DAMAGE. SYSTEM SHUT DOWN IN: 4 SECONDS.**

 

If he had more time, he would have told Ethan how he felt. If he had more time, he would have learned that the emotions he had for Ethan Mars was called “love.” If he had more time, he would have heard Ethan crying out his name and felt him hugging him back. He couldn't tell Ethan about his feelings for him because he never got the chance to understand he was hopelessly in love with a human. He had turned deviant too late, but he didn’t regret it at all. He considered himself to have lived a pretty good life, if what he had could be called that at all. He would die over and over again if it meant Ethan would get the chance to have a future, because there was nothing more important to him.

 

As his vision turned to black, the last thing Norman Jayden saw was flickering white letters for the last time. He smiled.

 

**OBJECTIVES COMPLETED:**

 

**FIND THE ORIGAMI KILLER**

 

**SAVE SHAUN MARS**

 

**PROTECT ETHAN MARS**

 

**NORMAN JAYDEN, MISSION SUCCESSFUL.**

 


End file.
